WASHINGTON, February 27, 2012 (AFP) - The United States on Monday dismissed as traditional "rhetoric and bluster" North Korean talk of war over US-South Korean joint military drills.

"This is a regularly scheduled exercise. We traditionally have this kind of rhetoric and bluster at the time of these exercises," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters.

"So we wouldn't consider that terribly new," she said when asked about the threats.

South Korea and the United States launched major annual military exercises on Monday, as North Korea said it was ready for war over what it termed a reckless provocation.

A North Korean foreign ministry spokesman denounced the timing of the exercises, days after US and North Korean officials held talks in Beijing.

The North "is fully ready for both dialogue and war", he told the official news agency.

The Key Resolve exercise, which began Monday is a 12-day drill largely involving computer-simulated war games, while Foal Eagle from March 1 to April 30 involves field training for air, ground and naval forces.